


Embers

by HedrickArrows



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Original Work
Genre: Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-31
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2019-12-30 00:53:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18304856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HedrickArrows/pseuds/HedrickArrows
Summary: An adventure, as it sometimes is, finds people not looking for any at all. But, with a goal of stopping a mad nobility, an unlikely team goes out to stop him, before his mad desires come true





	1. Prologue

It’s been quite some time now since they left the colony. Hedrick wondered how much exactly; but any time he asked if it was worth it, he immediately shook his head and moved forward. It’s a handful of them now, far less than the group that escaped. If you asked anyone who’s heard about the colony, they’d give you short answer: noone really knew why tieflings, a race supposedly rare, started growing in numbers so rapidly, so they had to make themselves a home somewhere. The truth, however, is not as simple. Those tieflings, like any other, need a variety of things, which usually cost money; so, eventually, a lot of them fell into debts. And it just happened that there was someone who offered help in the matter in exchange for some work. But the debts only kept growing, and with that, the internment eventually became slavery, with the burden falling onto the next generations.

Hedrick was born into such an environment, slightly misshapen, thanks to all the work his mother had to do, and later during his own. His whole life had been, and was going to be, this colony; unless someone took an interest in him. During his time, there’s been some other races already there; but the main language was still Infernal, despite it being violently punished. Everyone cut, everyone mined, everyone built; using cheap, primitive tools, hearing nothing but shouting. There were accidents, but the guards didn’t care about the workers; after all, anyone can fall in debt and come to the Valles. He lost his father like that; scaffolding unstable enough to fall down and crush anyone close enough. His mother had more luck, if one could call it like that. She got sold for quite a sum, given her “exotic appearance,” leaving Hedrick alone, with uncles, and aunts, and cousins.

It’s quite a miracle that he somehow stumbled upon a group that was planning to escape. They’ve been observing the guards, counting down the transports, predicting winds, memorizing everything that could be of any use, which continued for years. He never thought of a different life, but after this discovery and subsequent threats he was forced to consider such a possibility. They quickly introduced him to the plan - to hide in cargo and use it as means of escape. Everything seemed possible. When the day came, they started to turn it into reality, getting into crates and awaiting the transport. Unfortunately, halfway through loading, one of them fell down and opened, revealing its content. Upon that, some of the workers jumped on the carts and got them moving. A pursuit began almost immediately, which made fugitive split up in hopes of losing the tail. The cart with Hedrick in it never saw any of them again.

After a few days, horse’s leg broke, forcing everyone to move on foot. The morale only got downhill since then. Noone was sure if they managed to lose the chase, and just that thought was nerve-wrecking. They were in the middle of plains, with limited supplies and no direction. But they kept moving. Some of them couldn’t withstand the situation, both physically and emotionally fatigued. Some resigned, either going in another direction, or just laying down on the ground, not hoping for anything in particular. It’s a handful of them now, far less than the group that escaped; but they had to keep going. They’ve gone too far to give up now.

Finally, a glimmer of hope, as they see the city in the distance. Finally, some direction, some possibilities, some glimpses of a world different than never ending work or continuous escape. So they plan: they get in, get supplied, and move to a different town, just in case they are still chased. They cover their tattooed shoulders, the symbols of their “employers”, and decide to get a place to rest. The next day, they split up to cover all the needs as quickly as possible without raising any suspicions. They go to do their parts, and gather up soon enough; but Hedrick is missing - he got lost in the city; all of them nearly did, but he ran into more trouble while stealing the food; and so, to not risk any further, the group decided to go without him, leaving Hedrick alone, with merchants, and travelers, and townsfolks.


	2. Starting Fires

It was that time of the day when Maru was about to go home. That was his daily routine, more or less - get some work, visit the tavern, and spend the night deciphering his old book, or whatever else caught his attention at that time. However, finding a burglar was definitely not on a to-do list.

He was looking pretty rough; well, that’s what they said about Maru all the time, but that’s not who he should be focusing on right now. There was a burglar in what looked like worst assembly of ragged blankets. He had only one wing, no signs of a tail, and cautiously covered right arm. Soon enough, this guest turns back, and his blue face goes pale. He didn’t get anything he could take, however he knew that situation can get pretty grim. He tried to take a step towards the window, but as soon as he did that, Maru yelled.

\- Stop! - he pointed at him - Ya do one bad move and it ain't gonna end well.

What little room was not taken by fear on burglar’s face was briefly filled with lack of understanding. Maru sighed. He’s met tieflings maybe twice, and most of his knowledge of Infernal came from books anyway, but there probably wasn’t any better way of communication for now.

\- You - he slowly said, trying to remind himself the words - do move bad, you end... unnicely.

That painted burglar’s face with even more confusion, but he seemed to get the general idea.

\- Now - he continued - you tell what you do here, and your name.

\- I’m… - he hesitated - Hedrick. I didn’t mean to do anything wrong. I just-

\- Shush. - Maru shushed - Slow. Not good speak.

\- “Not good sp-” Oh. Sorry. Uh… I… poor? Got trouble. I new in here.

\- Uh-huh - Maru nodded. He started to get the picture.

\- I, um, no... family? I came to here for, uh… - he continued. He wondered how to explain what he wants without the key details; worse, to someone with limited knowledge of language?

Maru sighed. As much as he didn’t like the idea of becoming some sort of charity, he couldn’t just leave a kid in a terrible situation. He knew such a feeling.

\- Okay, come here - he gestured. He grabbed some of his clothes and gave them to the tiefling. - Try these.

Hedrick awkwardly looked around the room. Maru interpreted that as a need for some privacy, so he left. Waiting on the hall, he wondered what exactly got him here. After a moment, his guest seemed ready. Now, he could take a more proper look at his unexpected guest. Quite well built, but definitely not so well fed. One of his horns broken. Messy hair, but that's expected. Two things weren't quite resolved though. One, the makeshift cape covering Hedrick's arm was still there, but more importantly, he was topless. A tiny detail Maru didn't take into account was a wing, reasonably big and reasonably there, which prompted a sigh. Well, he thought, not like he would get him that shirt back. He grabbed a knife and cut a hole in the back of the shirt, gave it back to his guest, and left again. After he was done, Maru gave him two rolls, some coins and told him to stay safe. It was quite late so he considered offering a place to sleep, at least for the night, but the tiefling stormed outside, as if he was too scared that he'd change his mind and take it all back. Sigh. Hopefully there ain't gonna be more trouble. He grabbed the book he was working on, a pencil, and sat in his room. At least, he thought, that damn elf blood saving me money on candles.

The next day comes, and so, Maru goes out to find some work. It wasn't that hard to do. Plenty of lower class folks need things to be done. Mrs Brimesworth talks about a weird magical rodent in the neighbourhood, it gets caught; Mick says a word or two about some weird disease, there's a chemist who wants to repay for a rare ingredient; Tuz mentions landlord increasing rent, well… those rich pieces of shit want to squeeze every coin they got, but there's only so much he can do, so, for now, there's a free spot in the tailor's workshop, and the wage is decent. Sometimes favours and good word is all he gets, but at least his four walls are decent because of that.

Right now he was walking towards the city square, thinking about where to look for Barcos's son. There's been plenty of people disappearing lately, mostly beggars and homeless, but then you get cases like this one. Oh dear, he thought, looking at the street. It is a very unfortunate thing to do, in a crowded street, where, if you're not really liked by some influential figures, something _really unfortunate_ may happen to you. Maru, however, didn't have any time to consider that, before he felt an elbow on his head, and everything went dark.

Really dark.

Inescapable, uncaring dark.

Devoid of light and heat, or shade and chill.

Without care.

Without hate.

Without indifference.

The haunting dream, repeated.

Maru woke up with such an audible gasp it spooked the guard. He noticed it was rather dark, and his hands were chained to the wall, so he couldn't help but roll his eyes. He read plenty of stories like that, but never was really keen to try such an activity himself.

\- So, you're awake - the guard said - We were wondering if that accidentally didn't kill you.

\- Well, thank you for your worry, I suppose - Maru replied, shaking his chains - Mind explaining these?

\- Sorry. No can do. Lord Boron's orders. - guard answered, turning his back to the cell.

Maru just shook his head, and noticed some crickets on the floor. He started taking off the cuffs (they never really paid attention to the wrist size, huh) and carefully caught one.

\- You do like giving important information, don'tcha? - he said, and while the guard was turning back, he was already aiming at him and casting a spell.

_Speey_. The guard's knees softened, his eyes stopped focusing, back relaxed, and, just like that, he hit the ground a few meters outside of the cell. Now, Maru thought, how convenient I get to test that. He spotted a key ring on the guard's belt, but it was slightly out of reach, so he bent his fingers and whispered _Duon_. A blueish glove appeared in the air, and yanked the key ring from the belt. Maru caught it and opened his cell, still trying to figure out where exactly he was. Well, at least he had a name for that. I mean, he thought, there was crickets, not like this could be some dungeon or whatnot. As he was about to leave, he looked again at the unconscious guard. It only gonna last one minute, he remembered, as he dragged him into the cell, better not take any risks.

There were plenty of cells, half of them contained people, all of them went missing. Oddly enough, he couldn't find any guards others than next to his. He freed everyone on his way and ordered them to quietly search for an exit. He recognized many of those faces, like that one beggar who's sitting outside of the tavern every day, or Barcos's son in a pretty terrible state, or one blue, maimed, and very unconscious tiefling. So much for staying safe, he thought.

\- Wh- where am I? - Hedrick panicked as soon as he woke up.

\- Calm down - Maru said, figuring out the right words - go get exit. Quiet.

\- What's happening there? - Someone's voice came from the corridor. Shit.

There were five armed guards who spotted their prisoners escaping. Maru got out of the cell, aimed his hand quickly at them, and said _Speey_. Three of them immediately fell down, one got a little dizzy, but was still standing. Well, enough fancy spells, he thought. There was still some distance between them, which the remaining guards started rapidly reducing. The unfazed one was faster, so Maru swung his hand, snapping his fingers, and a bolt of fire flew out and hit the guard in the forehead. That itself didn't do much by itself, but it made enough smoke to cause him to stumble and fall over, losing consciousness. The other guard managed to not stumble over him, but Maru twisted his hand and said _Tvoosh_ , covering the ground under his feet in grease, so he also lost his balance. He was quickly approached and hit in the face, joining his colleagues in his slumber.

Hoping that this scene won't catch any more attention, Maru took their keys, and placed them into separate cells. When he locked the last one, he moved forward to find a bigger room, with some people he'd never seen before, most likely alchemists, messing with their flasks and ingredients. Trying as quietly as he could, he gets closer to a cover, when he spots someone else. Tied to the table, skin pale green, definitely malnourished. An image too familiar. Maru got too angry at that image to notice that one of the alchemists manages to spot him.

\- Hey! Who are you? - he says, receiving a fire bolt as a response. Another one hits the shelf with ingredients, setting them ablaze. Maru raises his hand, shaping the flame into a humanoid figure, and twists it, causing a horrifying scream to come out of the flames, as they returned to a normal shape. Using this distraction, he tossed more fire bolts at the alchemists, too shocked to respond. He didn't notice one of them getting close from the other side of the room, and he definitely didn't appreciate getting slammed to the wall.

\- Suddenly, the door to the chamber flew open, which distracted the man, who did not see a mace flying towards his back. To his surprise, Maru saw Hedrick, as well as a few other prisoners, carrying weapons left on the corridors.

\- I thought I told you t’ find exit! - Maru yelled.

\- Ye, good to see you too - said one of the prisoners - what do we do about those fine folks? - he asked, pointing at the alchemists

\- Don't know - he responded, untying the test subject from the table - First, we treat problems. Wounds. Hungers. Then, I got to chit chat with Boron.

\- Boron? - another prisoner joined in - Who the hell's that?

\- Hey - said the first one - why don't we ask one of those lovely fellas?

\- Cold water wakes the alchemist up. He discovers he's tied to the table and surrounded by his former prisoners.

\- Hey there - says one of them - why won't ya say a word or two about that whole lord Boron?

\- You won't get a word from me! - he angrily responds.

\- Are you _sure_ about that?

\- Yes! - he confirms proudly - There's nothing you can d-

\- Look, buddy - interrupts another one - you're not really in a good position to claim so, and my friends here - he points around - are _really_ impatient, so unless you cooperate, we'll get you back to sleep, and try with any of your pals here.

\- The alchemist looked around, closes his eyes for a moment, and began his speech.

\- Lord Boron is a proud ruler of Zakop, on his noble quest to find a cure for the one illness that's been plaguing the world since the beginning of time, the one sickness that seems to be inescapable, and he'll stop at no- - he proclaimed until Maru angrily hit him in the face.

\- Hey, why'd you do that? - said one of the prisoners - At least you could let him finish.

\- No, couldn't stand that nonsense - he angrily responded - It some rich buffoon wanting immortality, testing shit at commoners! - he yelled. He had some experience with a grand and powerful asshole once. Didn’t end so well for anyone.

\- So… what do we do now? - finally someone asked.

\- You go talk with guards about those kidnappers - Maru responded - Imma go have some chit chat with this whole Boron.

When they got out of the tunnels, they found themselves in the ruins of an old castle, in the outskirts of the city, and Maru could feel his eyes nearly rolling deeper into his skull. He didn't care much about the compensation for finding those people; his mind was focused on finding the man behind all this. He went back to his place in order to pack his things. What he didn’t expect was seeing Hedrick again there.

\- What are you going to do? - he asked. Maru needed a moment to process that.

\- Going out town - he answered.

\- Can I go too? - he continued. There was a sense of urgency in his voice. Maru thought about what he said, and shook his head, but the tiefling insisted. He sighed. That kid wasn’t telling him everything, and even if, there’d be no way to understand all of it. But there’s something about him that rings a bell. Then, again, leaving him here may not exactly do him much good either. He weighed his purse. It looked like they’d be having quite some time to manage all that.


	3. Wild Card

It'd been two days since they left the city. Hedrick kept wondering what exactly was happening, but there’s only so much information he could get with such language skills. It didn’t exactly help that this weird stranger he’d been following following was rather silent that whole time. All he knew was that person did something for him, and hopefully would do it again. Also, good enough of a reason to keep moving forward, in case those hunting parties are still somewhere out there.

It’d been two days since Maru and this kid got out of town. He got everything properly packed - pots, some torches, food, his old lute, important books he didn’t want to leave, and so on. He even got a book about Infernal. A goddamn dictionary. A list of helpful phrases. Like some sort damned of tourist from a rich county. Why’d he done that, he thought. Well, to at least try to get a bit from what that kid was saying. Why’d he even agree to take him? He insisted. There was something familiar about him. He sighed. He thought of maybe getting him somewhere safe and continuing alone; because what he intended to do was definitely not so.

That night wouldn’t change much either. Hedrick fell asleep after anxiously observing everything around him. His sleeping bag was much better than just laying on the ground, so eventually he just gave up and closed his eyes. Maru meanwhile grabbed his book and got back to figuring out the words and how to properly use them. He wouldn’t sleep that night. He didn’t sleep. He didn’t like what came in the sleep. Besides, someone gotta pay attention to the surroundings, just in case.

The next day the tiefling decided to break the silence.

\- Uhm… - he started hesitantly - sorry for not saying it earlier…

Maru stopped and looked at him, trying to digest the words.

\- My name is Hedrick - he continued - thank you for taking me with you, sir.

\- Hedrick. - he repeated slowly, pointing at him. Then carefully responded, pointing at himself - Maru. It good to know you.

Then he proceeded to mutter five different ways he could’ve ended that sentence in an unsure tone, after which he simply shrugged, and started walking forward again.

Hedrick took that as a good sign. True, his companion’s accent was odd, and his manner of speech would probably get a good laugh back at Valles, but it was an improvement. Maybe there could be a chance of a proper conversation.

\- Where are we going, sir? - he asked.

That took Maru a while to think of, because he wasn’t yet skilled enough to say “well just gonna meet whoever that bastard who got us locked ‘n get him maimed”, so after what felt like forever for both of them he just pointed vaguely forward and said “There.” That wasn’t an answer that seemed good for both of them, but they just had to accept it, at least for that moment.

They didn't talk much until they found a tavern near the woods. Maru thought this may be the chance he was hoping for; and some fresher food wouldn't hurt anyone. Inside, there was some crowd: a hooded man with a pipe in the corner of the hall, big, muscular warrior next to the bar chugging his beer, cloaked figure wearing a mask, most likely a bard, plucking their instrument; so, Maru thought, the usual, plenty of weird individuals, so noone would really pay attention to them. They found a table, put down their bags, and Maru went to get them two some soup. It looked decent, and smelled quite nicely. Hedrick looked at his bowl, hesitantly grabbed a spoon, and took a sip. Its taste immediately reminded him of home so much, that he couldn't help but start crying. Back in the Valles, when they got the food prepared, he and his cousins would grab packs, bags, and sometimes even pots to all the people who couldn't leave their workplaces. They'd even challenge each other who could be faster while carrying the most. How many days had it been? How many weeks? How many of them gave up? How many got caught? He didn't know. He could only sit here, sobbing, with a bowl of soup that got cold by then.

Maru wasn't really hungry; he got himself a bowl mostly just to keep him company. He looked around the tavern. There was plenty of people, all of them minding their own business. There was some hobbits arguing with the owner of the tavern. The warrior was boasting about their strength, challenging others to beat them in arm wrestling. Some ladies were chatting with each other, sounded like a discussion about how to get rid of an abusive husband properly. The masked person was playing something rather catchy. He turned to Hedrick.

\- Look - he began - we require talk…

Before he could continue his attention was caught by a group of five hooded men entering the hall. Light, turquoise uniforms, crestes with a symbol he did not recognise; but Hedrick did. He grabbed his still covered shoulder. The crowned diamond, crest of Intosh family, which all workers were marked with. One of them noticed that, and came to their table.

\- Excuse me - he said with a peremptory tone, looking at the boy - we are looking for a group of people who got lost. They were all tieflings, in a poor condition, to that. Have you seen them?

\- We ain't seen noone - Maru answered - We travelling west to meet someone important.

\- Right - the man responded, still looking at Hedrick - could you uncover that? - he said, pointing at his shoulder.

He didn't understand a word, but he was well aware what he meant. There wasn't much that he could do. It seemed like the end of the road. He looked at him, and then at Maru, hoping for any sort of help. They looked each other in the eyes, and then he nodded to the tiefling, making a gesture under the table and quietly whispering something. Hedrick slowly put down his makeshift cape, and started rolling up his sleeve. Maru could see his right arm for the first time - it was noticeably shorter, had plenty of scars and bruises, and had only four fingers. He could only wonder what exactly happened that had lead to this state. As Hedrick finally uncovered his shoulder, he was surprised to find that the marking was not there. He slowly looked at the man standing next to him, and covered it again.. The man apologized, and went back to his companions, who were getting food while looking in their direction.

\- Thank you, sir- - Hedrick began, but was quickly interrupted.

\- No thank yet. Wait. - Maru said - And no “sir” - he pointed at himself - Maru. Just Maru. Ye? - he finished, raising his eyebrows, or rather the skin where the eyebrows would normally be - We require talk - he repeated, and, noticing he didn't touch his soup at all, grabbed the bowl and took a few sips, before standing up and grabbing his backpack. He'd hoped there would be no trouble here. Oh well, he thought. Shit.

Hedrick immediately stood up and got his things as well. As they were going towards the door, he noticed the men in turquoise also started moving.

\- Maru… - he said, getting closer to him, fearing the worst.

As they got outside, he saw them reaching for their weapons. Suddenly, he heard Maru yell something, and when he looked at him, his hand was raised up, and a blinding flash came out of it. Suddenly, he could feel his hand being grabbed as he heard another word. He smelled smoke from all around him, and he could swear he just flew because of how hard he was pulled. When he could finally see properly, they were already running, but trying to take a look back the young tiefling could’ve sworn there was no way they just jumped that distance.

Maru was glad it did work. As far as he knew, “Mist Step” only worked on the caster (plus that was not exactly “mist”, but eh), however the kid seemed fine, and, whatever trouble he just got himself into, is probably better to be taken care of later. For now, he thought, would probably be a good idea to just leg it. The woods also seemed like a good idea. Once he thought he lost them, he grabbed Hedrick with both hands and looked him in the eyes. The boy thought it’s gonna be a lot of yelling, since his companion looked angry.

\- What you done them? - he yelled, disregarding all the linguistic details from the book he got.

\- I… - Hedrick stuttered - I ran away… - he replied, at was quite surprised to see what seemed like an angry face rapidly change to confusion, then understanding, then absolute fury. But he wasn’t furious at this kid.

Oh, no. He only wanted to meet whoever was responsible for whatever was done to him.

They heard someone shout.

\- There they are! - it was one of those men. He found the source of the noise and casted a spell to get them to sleep; but it didn’t work. What in fuck didn’t work, he muttered to himself, nervously snapping fingers, are they elves or what?

Arrows started flying their way. They had to run, fast.

As they were running, Maru was throwing back fire bolts. Some of them fizzled out, hitting the trees or the ground. Some managed to hit the pursuers, knocking three of them out. Eventually, some dry leaves and twigs caught fire, which Maru immediately pulled up, hoping it would slow them down.

As the remaining two of the chasing party were stopped by the flame, one of them felt a sudden, sharp pain from behind, and fell on the ground. His comrade turned around, and saw the bard from the tavern, standing before him and reading a book.

\- Who are you? - he said, grabbing his sword.

\- Why, - the hooded figure responded, closing the book - would that help you, soldier boy?

Upon hearing that, he felt like someone just hurt him, though he couldn’t really understand how exactly, partially because he, also, was laying on the ground.

The bard looked at both of them, and, after a while, decided to put down the fire.

 

It’s been late. Maru was staring at the campfire, thinking about what happened that day. Maybe there really was something about that kid that was familiar to his experiences. But what for now? He kept staring in the fire in silence, like he was hoping it would bring him answers.

Hedrick was looking at him this whole time, wondering what exactly would happen as well. They found him. He couldn’t stay anywhere for too long again. Maru would probably ask a lot of questions. He grabbed his shoulder. Would he end up running his whole life?

They heard footsteps.

Maru immediately stood up, trying to find whoever was approaching. Hedrick, despite being scared, clenched his fists, ready to fight. The person emerging from shadows was the masked bard, with both of his hands raised, and a visible supply of food. Maru frowned.

\- What you doin’ here? - he asked.

\- Oh well - bard replied - to be quite honest, I was looking for you.

\- For…? - he kept eyeing the mask, hiding their guest’s face completely.

\- Oh, frankly, you looked interesting, so I thought of maybe joining you.

Maru straightened his back. Hedrick came closer to him.

\- What are you talking about? - he said, looking at the bard.

\- Oh, I thought you may be wanting more company - a reply came in a fluent Infernal, which surprised both of them. Maru blinked. A rare opportunity was before him. He looked at Hedrick, who had his mouth opened with disbelief.

\- What, didn’t you have a proper chit-chat with anyone lately? - bard continued - Maybe it is good that I found you guys.

Maru sighed. This was way too complicated gibberish for him, barely crawling through the syntax and vocabulary. He looked back at the bard.

\- ...sure - he agreed - Your name?

\- They call me - a mysterious pose was struck - Zneek.

\- Who they? - Maru responded. Zneek, looking kind of surprised, stopped posing.

\- You know, it’s… just a figure of speech, like… you know.

Maru didn’t exactly react to that. What happened behind that mask was a total enigma, but the whole rest of Zneek looked pretty much like a definition of giving up.

\- And what exactly you’ve been doing so far? - he asked.

\- Oh, you know - bard replied - stuff any other girl wants to do. Leave home. Cultivate passion. See more of the world. The usual stuff.

At this moment, Hedrick started talking more with her. She happily responded, and answered many of the questions he had. Maru could only catch maybe every fifth word of what they were talking about. He sighed again. She knew they’d agree. She knew we had no food, but that stopped being the selling poing after hearing the poor kid. Though, he thought, on another hand, maybe it would be better to have more company.

The two of them would chat for the rest of the night, and the next day. He listened to them arguing about something that sounded rather important.

\- So - he said to Zneek - you know about those guys from tavern?

\- Those who went after you? Yeah. They were from Intosh family - she replied - Your friend here told me they got a lot of people working under them, and quite unfairly.

Maru frowned when he heard that. But when he was about to ask another question, they were back to chatting about what sounded like favourite flowers, though he could’ve been wrong about that. Didn’t matter for now, he thought, seeing Hedrick’s energetic talk. The sun was rising, and they were moving forward.


	4. Campfire

\- And what was that armour? - Hedrick asked

\- Well - Zneek cheerfully answered - his armour, it was made out of dragon scales, and many of kinds of those! It is said it could withstand any attack!

\- Wow… - he gasped - have you ever met a dragon?

\- She smiled. He couldn’t see that because of the mask, obviously, but she did.

\- Why, _of course_! - she waved her hand - A big, graceful beast! And knowledgeable! Shared many stories with me, and so did I, so I was gladly gifted with some of these incredible things - she reaches to her bag to show some red scales, making him gasp.

Maru was sitting on the other side of the campfire. They were talking way too fast for him to barely even get a word. Nothing seemed right in this situation. First, he’d got a kid that’s apparently a slave colony fugitive, and now there’s also that theatre figure who’s here for fun? All he had was questions, mostly to Zneek, because at least she knew Common more than he knew Infernal. But they seemed preoccupied. Well then, he thought, just gonna mind my own business. He reached for his lute and started playing a slow tune.

\- Your friend, is he playing like that usually? - Zneek asked Hedrick, as both of them looked surprised at Maru.

\- ...no - he replied - he never did play before.

They listened in silence for a bit. When he noticed they are no longer talking, but instead watching him play, he stopped strumming and stared back.

\- What - he blurted.

\- _Boy_ , where did you learn to play lute? - Zneek exclaimed, which made both of her comrades jump.

\- ...why? - he inquired, not sure what she meant.

\- Oh - she raised both of her hands - don’t get me wrong; that’d be the first time hearing that in a _long_ \- wait, I think it’d be first time, _period_ , and it does sound _good, but dagn_ \- she stood up - that sure does sound a bit crude.

She went to get her lute - an ornamented instrument, made out of what looked like a really expensive wood, with many gilded details. Maru looked at his. It was old, simple, yet really sturdy. Probably broke a few bones.

\- Okay - she strummed to check - could you play that again?

He took a moment to think.

\- Mind if we talk after all that? - he responded.

\- Sure, sure, I suppose - she replied, correcting her grip in anticipation.

So, Maru started strumming slowly. The tune was calm and reassuring, like waking up at summer, feeling the comfort of a soft bed and smelling freshly baked bread; like the first rays of sunshine reaching the hammock and hearing the boiling of a really good stew. They listened a bit more, then Zneek caught herself thinking about home. She shook her head and started playing along. At first, mimicking him, then slowly started adding more and more little details here and there. When her improvisation started getting really noticeable, Maru stopped so he could listen for a moment.

It took her some time to notice she was the only one playing, but by then she’s went above and beyond what she’d been playing at the beginning. She looked around, said “oh,” sat back down and put her lute on her lap.

\- Well, - Maru started, bobbing his head - good. Very… ornate.

\- Thanks - she sniffed, and straighened her back - _ahem_. Well, thanks. I always aim to please.

\- Um... - Hedrick interrupted.

\- Yes, what is it? - Zneek turned to him.

\- Could you... - he hesitated - ask him to play something else? I mean- You do play good but-

\- Oh, you wanted to listen to _more_? - Zneek exclaimed joyously, slapping her knee - _Yes!_ Why not, I feel like your friend here knows _many more_ tunes I’d want to listen to as well! - she then turned to Maru, repeating the question.

He looked at the sky. It was slowly getting dark. Oh well.

He started strumming.

 

  
The fire was still burning late at night, and Hedrick was fast asleep. Zneek was also feeling a bit sleepy, but she knew Maru wanted to talk; and she had some questions, too. For now, he was watching either the flames, or looking at the tiefling in his sleeping bag. She came closer to sit next to him.

- _So_ \- she started - how many taverns did you visit to know this many tunes?

He looked at her.

\- _You know_ \- she continued - you don’t just go to one or two and hear all of that.

He sighed.

\- Dunno - he muttered - never really counted.

\- _D’aww_ \- she responded disappointed.

\- Now, my turn. Why you here with us?

Zneek tilted her head.

\- Anyone’s ever told you the way you talk is weird?

He looked her straight in the eyeholes.

\- _No._ \- he nodded - _First time hearing that._

They looked at each other in silence for a few seconds.

\- _Well_ \- Zneek stretched her arms - family wasn’t necessarily all right with what I wanted to do. Always wanting me to get around their work. _But!_ \- she straightened her legs - Found myself a muse, a way out, and those fancy clothes.

Maru frowned, thinking about what she said.

\- I mean - she continued - after all, there was not much to do. I like travelling, but aimless walking around just isn’t really for me. And you - she pointed at him - really did look interesting - she looked down - I just didn’t know you had that much fun in store. _BUT!_ \- she stood up - what fun would it be otherwise?

Maru shrugged. He didn’t have any good response for that.

\- Anyway, I really _do_ like your music - she patted his back - a bit raw, but what a variety! You need to show me a bit more!

He chuckled.

\- Why not.

The fire was slowly burning out.

\- Mind if I use you to talk with him? - he asked, pointing at Hedrick - like, tomorrow, or later?

She took a deep breath.

\- _Well_ \- she looked at him - at this rate it would be easier if either you'd learn Infernal, or he'd learn Common. Or both.

\- Yeah... I guess. Should do that.

The moon was high in the sky.

\- Oh well - Zneek grabbed her sleeping bag - I think we should be getting some rest, too.

\- Sure, go get some rest - he said.

\- And you? - she asked.

\- Just gonna make sure noone come when we sleep.

\- Ever slept properly? - she inquired.

\- Not ‘til I cure insomnia - he answered, looking at the dying fire.


End file.
